Texas A&M Aggies Football News: Regular Season and Preseason Updates

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3/18/15: Texas A&M is not going to look good for this. It seems that a family donated $60,000 for a scholarship some 30 years ago. In return, they got their pick of seats at home games as well as great parking, for life. With Kyle Field undergoing renovations, they have been asked to pick new seats, but it will cost $15,000 per seat. The family is fighting the university and has a pretty good case. Now the story is out in the media and there is not many ways to make a positive PR spin, as well as not scare off future donors. There is precedent for this type of case, and the family has won in the past.

3/4/15: This is a situation that shows how litigious and property-hungry we are as a society. For the past few years, Texas A&M head coach has been using the slogan "We Run This State" to show how the program has become the standard-bearer in Texas. He often tweets about commitments from recruits with #WTRS. That may not happen any more. The father of 2015 Aggies recruit Daylon Mack filed trademark papers for #WTRS, likely in hopes to capitalize on selling merchandise. That means the Aggies may not be able to use the hashtag slogan without paying royalty fees in the future. So A&M is reportedly distancing themselves from the slogan just to avoid any mess at all.

2/18/15: SEC schools have been purging each other over the last two months for coaches, and Texas A&M could be considered a chief poacher. Back on December 31, 2014, it was learned that the Aggies were hiring LSU defensive coordinator John Chavis, who is among the most respected defensive minds in the college game. Six weeks later, the hiring is official. It took a while to get the buyout settlement straight, but all is completed now. LSU has had great defenses under Chavis, finishing no worse than 21st. If A&M can put together a quality defense, then they could well be a national contender.

2/11/15: Texas A&M and the University of Texas no longer compete on the football field, but they certainly compete in the recruiting arena that is known as the state of Texas. The Longhorns, under second year coach Charlie Strong had a good recruiting class and are ranked 12th nationally by Rivals. Texas A&M, however, was a bit better and finished #10. The Aggies pulled in one 5-star recruit (wide receiver Christian Kirk) as well as 11 4-star guys. Overall, it was the top recruiting class in the state of Texas, so Coach Sumlin can keep saying "We Run This State".

2/4/15: As National Signing Day approached, the Aggies got quite a scare from their top QB recruit, Kyler Murray. Murray tweeted a photo of a Texas Longhorns jersey when he went on a surprise visit to UT. But keep calm everyone. Head coach Kevin Sumlin made a personal trip to see Murray and Murray has since reaffirmed his allegiance. Murray is a four star recruit and is ranked as the number five dual-threat QB in the country, as well as the 9th ranked player in all of Texas. Additionally, his father went to Texas A&M, and it looks like Kyler will as well.

1/28/15: The Aggies, with about a week to go before National Signing Day, are looking pretty good in the recruiting rankings. They sit at No. 8 right now and have a chance to move up over the next week. Actually, all of the SEC West is doing well, with all seven teams ranked in the top 25. There is some concern about verbal commit Kyler Murray. He is a 5-star prospect and is the second ranked dual threat QB in the country. However, he took an unexpected trip to Austin recently, so the Aggies may have to work hard to keep him from flipping to the Longhorns.

1/21/15: Texas A&M has a new wide receivers coach. The Aggies added Aaron Moorehead to the coaching staff last week. For Moorehead, it is a lateral move as he held the same position at Virginia Tech under Frank Beamer. The wide receivers coaching position was available because the man that formerly held that post, David Beaty, left A&M to take the head coaching position at the University of Kansas. Moorehead will have some talent to work with, including Josh Reynolds, who led the team in receiving last season with 842 yards and 13 touchdowns, as well as the freshman duo of Speedy Noil and Ricky Seals-Jones.

1/14/15: There have been a few interesting developments out of College Station over the past few weeks. Aside from being one of the few SEC teams to win a bowl game this season, the Aggies went out on a limb and hired defensive coordinator John Chavis away from LSU. LSU is known to have good defenses year in and year out, so this is a big hire. Additionally, Kenny Hill III has asked for his release from the program. He started out the year on fire as the starting quarterback, but lost the job during the season. Reports indicate that he wants to transfer to TCU, but would have to sit out a year.

1/7/15: Texas A&M took a step back this season without Johnny Manziel and Mike Evans to lead the offense, but they still won enough games to represent the SEC in the Liberty Bowl in Memphis, Tennessee. They faced off against West Virginia, who beat Baylor earlier in the season. Fans were treated to a great game that was back and forth in the first half, with the Aggies only up by one. Then A&M took over in the third quarter with 17 points to put the game away and win 45-37. QB Kyle Allen threw for 294 yards, four touchdowns and one interception, as the Aggies put a nice stamp on the season.

12/3/14: Texas A&M had a tough time replicating the success they enjoyed in their first two years in the SEC and fell to a 7-5 overall record and 3-5 conference record this season. After getting off to a great start to the regular season by thumping South Carolina, the Aggies struggled and have not been able to right the ship. They ended their regular season with a 23-17 home loss to LSU, which ensured a sub-500 conference record. The good news is that A&M is going to a bowl game and that game will be determined soon. There is a chance they could end up playing against long-time rival Texas, but all parties would have to agree.

11/19/14: For the second year in a row, former Big 12 rival Missouri got the best of A&M in their annual game. The Tigers outlasted the host Aggies 34-27. The Aggies simply could not stop the Mizzou ground attack, which racked up 335 yards on 49 carries. Tigers running back Russell Hansbrough was particularly problematic, as he alone accounted for 199 yards and two scores. The loss knocked A&M out of the top 25 and dropped their record to 7-4 on the season. The Aggies will be invited to a bowl game, but each loss drops them down another tier. A&M has a bye this weekend before hosting LSU the following Thursday.

11/12/14: Texas A&M has been inconsistent all season and has not looked particularly good over the past few weeks. So everyone had penciled in a win for host Auburn (ranked No. 3) last Saturday. But that, they say, is why they play the game. Freshman Jake Allen started for the Aggies and grew up quick. The Aggies put up points early and often. The defense held the game in the second half and recovered two key late fumbles to put the game on ice with a 41-38 win. A&M improved to 7-3 overall and threw a big monkey wrench into the SEC West standings. The Aggies are home this Saturday to face SEC East leader Mizzou.

11/5/14: Texas A&M did not have a bye last weekend, but they may as well have. The Aggies scheduled University of Louisiana Monroe while most other teams were playing quality opponents. The bigger news out of Aggieland was the benching of Kenny Hill - a guy that many media members were about ready to give the Heisman Trophy to after the first week of the season. But this was more of a glorified scrimmage. The real game comes this week when A&M heads into Auburn for a critical game. A win boosts the Aggies up while also crushing Auburn's chances at getting into the playoffs.

10/29/14: Texas A&M is still smarting from the beating they took at Alabama a couple of weeks ago. That loss likely ended any hope of winning the SEC and getting into the playoffs, but it can serve as a teaching moment for this group. We should not forget that QB Kenny Hill is young and still learning. That loss will probably motivate him in the future. In any case, the Aggies had last weekend off, which could serve as a great chance to regroup. Texas A&M is now 5-3 on the season and 2-3 in the SEC. But they should win big this Saturday as they take out their frustrations on the University of Louisiana - Monroe.

10/22/14: Any hopes the Aggies had of getting back into the playoff conversation ended early Saturday afternoon in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. The Alabama Crimson Tide put up 10 first quarter points, then dropped 35 more in the second quarter to overwhelm Texas A&M. The Aggies could not move the ball all day. Kenny Hill managed only 138 yards passing and the running game provided only 31 yards on the day - and that was in the second half. The loss drops A&M to 5-3 overall and 2-3 in the SEC. The Aggies get this week off to regroup then are back at home against University of Louisiana-Monroe

10/15/14: It has been a tough couple of weeks for the Aggies, as they have dropped consecutive games to teams from Mississippi. Texas A&M fell to the Mississippi State Bulldogs in Week 6 and the Ole Miss Rebels last Saturday (36-20). The Aggies allowed the Rebels to build up a 21 point lead at halftime and just did not have enough time to mount a comeback. The pollsters will punish Texas A&M for the consecutive losses, but, to be fair, the losses were to two excellent teams. The Aggies have a chance to add some more chaos to the SEC if they can beat one-loss Alabama this Saturday in Tuscaloosa.

10/8/14: It was a tough Week 6 for four of the top six team in the land. Number 2 Oregon, No. 3 Alabama, No. 4 Oklahoma and No. 6 Texas A&M were all upset. The Aggies were run out of Starksville, Mississippi by a surprisingly good Mississippi State team, 48-31. The Aggies simply had no answer for Bulldogs' running game, which torched the A&M defense for 289 yards and five touchdowns. The loss put A&M at 5-1 on the season and 2-1 in the SEC. The silver lining is that since so many top teams lost, the Aggies are not out of the playoff picture at all. They will need to rebound this Saturday when they host Ole Miss, who just upset Alabama.

10/1/14: The No. 6 ranked Aggies met Arkansas on a neutral field in Dallas last Saturday afternoon, and they got all they could handle from the unranked Razorbacks. To be fair, Arkansas, despite being 0-2 in SEC play this season, is much better than most people expected. Texas A&M actually trailed 28-14 going into the fourth quarter, but managed two late touchdowns to force the game into overtime. They scored a touchdown on the first OT to secure the win. A&M is now 5-0 on the season and looking like a possible playoff contender. But no rest for the weary as the Aggies head to Starksville this Saturday to meet Mississippi State.

9/24/14: Texas A&M has looked very impressive this season, with Johnny Manziel's successor Kenny Hill running the Aggies' offense perhaps better than Johnny Football did. The sixth ranked Aggies travelled across the state to SMU in the most recent edition of what was once a good rivalry (about 30 years ago before SMU got the 'death sentence'). This was not a contest at all as Texas A&M rolled the Mustangs 58-6. The win put Texas A&M at 4-0 on the season and 1-0 in SEC play. They will get into the heart of the conference schedule this Saturday when they head up to Arkansas.

9/17/14: The Aggies are still reveling in their big win against South Carolina on the road. That win has earned the team some national recognition. That is a great move for the program. Of course, games against Rice and SMU will not garner the same appreciation from the national pundits. But these are good games to have. They promote football in the state of Texas and give the Aggies a chance to work out all the kinks their game before heading into the heart of the SEC schedule. Be patient, Aggies, bigger games are coming sooner than you think.

8/28/14: There is no doubt that SEC has the strongest conference from top to bottom, but even SEC teams often take the first week of the season with cupcakes and creampuffs to get some live game action. Not Texas A&M. Game one on Thursday is against SEC East runner-up South Carolina. It also bears mentioning that South Carolina is picked by most experts to win the SEC East this season. While there will be no Jadeveon Clowney and no Johnny Manziel, this should be one of the better matchups in the first weekend of the college football season.

8/21/14: Just two years ago, the Aggies were joining the SEC, and were greeted by a bunch of chuckles and disinterest. At that time, no one outside of College Station had heard of redshirt freshman QB Johnny Manziel. Of course, A&M went on to beat Alabama that season and Manziel won the Heisman Trophy. Manziel is now with the Cleveland Browns of the NFL, so it is time for a new era. Kenny Hill is the new starter and will lead the team in Week One of the college football season in a visit to South Carolina on August 28.

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